Time Will Tell
by Lustiel's Journal
Summary: Sam and Dean get a tip that a mysterious organization called Ultra is abducting people with unusual powers. It soon becomes clear this case will not be their usual in-and-out, as if their lives weren't complicated enough. Set early season nine of Supernatural (Sam/Ezekiel) and early in The Tomorrow People (pre-The Founder). Rated M for eventual torture.
1. Chapter 1

Set early season nine of Supernatural (Sam/Ezekiel) and early in The Tomorrow People (pre-The Founder). Sorry for the short chapters. I'm keeping to a perspective approach, at least initially. Things will get a little more complicated later...

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The Impala grumbled to a stop in the parking garage, expressing Sam's silent apprehension. He had a bad feeling about this. Well, more so than usual. "Dean, this might as well be a government facility."

Dean gave him a sharp look. "You said it was a private company!"

Sam sighed. "Yes, I mean, at least on the outside it is. It's the Institute of Genomics and Advanced Biomathematics. Notice no university name associated with that. But it gets tons of government funding. And I don't mean just normal medical research funds. I'm talking Department of Defense, Department of Energy, Department of Transportation… and _a lot_ of money. I'm just say—"

"What, that these are secret government labs?"

Sam let out a huff of exasperation. "I'm just saying we need to be careful with the FBI disguise. First sign that these guys see through us, we gotta bolt. No trying to talk our way out of it."

Dean rolled his eyes. "Fine. Any trouble, we vamoose."

"I'm serious, Dean." Sam regarded him with a solemn look. "This is risky, even for us."

"I hear ya," Dean replied as he opened the door. Turning away from Sam, his eyebrows bunched together as he tried to figure out what had his brother so rattled. _Lucky for you, we got an angel up our sleeve,_ Dean thought, relaxing.

The two walked silently to the entrance of the unusual building. Casting a glance at Sam, Dean could tell he had gotten his anxiety in check and was shifting into agent mode. He lifted his chin and stood a little straighter, which somehow reminded him of Ezekiel. He bit his lip. The weight of lying to Sam was crushing him, but this was his only option. He couldn't let Sam die. It wasn't in his DNA.

The harsh sound of Sam clearing his throat brought him back to the present. He came to stand next to his gigantor brother in front of the security desk. "Hello, I'm Agent Evans," Sam said flatly, flashing his badge. "This is my partner, Agent Hewson."

The guard inspected the badges for a moment then looked Sam in the eye. "I assume you're here to meet with Dr. Price?"

"Uh, yes, with Dr. Price, that's right," Sam replied, trying not to rush his answer. He eyed Dean as the guard mumbled into his radio.

"Okay, Dr. Price's intern, Stephen, will take you up."

Dean nodded. "Thank you."

"Have a good day," Sam added awkwardly. Dean elbowed him as they moved towards the steps. "What?" Sam hissed.

"Have a good day," Dean mimicked. Sam scoffed but otherwise kept quiet. "And who the hell is this Dr. Price guy?" he whispered.

"I told you about him earlier, weren't you listening?" The blank look Dean returned answered his question. Sam pulled out his phone and typed the name in. He saw a bio page for Dr. Jedikiah Price and clicked on it. Text started filling the screen but the picture seemed unable to load. "Says here he's the director of the institute, has a Ph.D. in molecular genetics, tons of publications..." Sam read off.

"And the director of Ultra?" Dean murmured quietly as a young man with dark hair approached them.

"I have no idea, Dean." He looked away from his phone and shoved it in his pocket, just as the photo appeared.

"Guess we'll find out the hard way!" Dean said, squaring himself up to the approaching man.


	2. Chapter 2

Stephen trudged down the stairs towards the two suits. Why Jedikiah couldn't be bothered to walk himself out of his office and down the stairs was beyond him. _I can't get any closer to my mission if he keeps sending me on stupid errands_. He sighed. _Whatever. Gotta gain his trust,_ he thought bitterly. He reached the bottom and sized up the two men. He took a reading on the shorter agent, feeling amusement and affection towards his partner radiating off the man. Disinclined to dig deeper into those thoughts, he turned his attention to the taller, younger man, and was instantly rebuffed. Besides the outward signs that the man was anxious, he was unable to read his thoughts. _A Tomorrow Person?_ he thought skeptically. Before blowing his cover, he decided to use another tactic.

"Hello, agents. My name is Stephen." He held out his hand as he continued. "I work with Dr. Price. I can take you up to his office."

The younger man smiled genuinely and took his hand. "Good to meet you, Stephen. I'm Sam Evans, this here is Dean Hewson." Stephen used the contact to press harder into the agent's mind. An unnerving whine filled his head and he shook it to dissipate the painful sound. He frowned slightly and decided to try again later. He shook Agent Hewson's outstretched hand, not caring for the heated thoughts the man was directing towards a passing woman, though he did catch a heavy dose a guilt threading through the man's consciousness.

"Alright, follow me," Stephen said calmly, despite the knot forming in his stomach. Something was off about Agent Evans. The two men silently followed him as he led them to his uncle's office. He considered reaching out to the tall man telepathically. He glanced back at him, and changed his mind once he saw the preoccupied expression on the stranger's face. He'd have to shout to get through to him at this rate, and then other Ultra agents would hear. _Whatever, let Jedikiah deal with them,_ he grumbled mentally. His uncle was seated in his chair, facing the windows. Stephen knocked on the glass. An arm wrapped in a tailored suit motioned for them to enter. He held the door open and ushered the two men inside.

"What can I do for you, gentlemen?" Jedikiah asked, still turned away from them.

Agent Evans seemed to freeze momentarily before regaining his composure. The other agent clearly noticed but didn't know what to make of it. "Yes, we are—" the shorter man began.

"From the FBI," Jedikiah interrupted. The taller man's shoulders tensed involuntarily. Stephen eyed him carefully, trying to tune into him. "I thought I was exempt from your little visits," he stated calmly. "Want to tell me what this is about?" he said, spinning in his chair to face the agents, his signature cool smile decorating his lips.

Suddenly, Stephen felt a wave of crippling fear crash over him. His breath left him only to be replaced by nausea as indescribable flashes of torture and destruction tore through his mind. Cruel laughter dominated his senses and he struggled to stay afloat in the sea of misery inundating every ounce of his being. He looked from an oblivious Jedikiah to the trembling man a few feet away from him. He was close enough to hear him whisper "Lucifer!"


	3. Chapter 3

"Lucifer!" Sam murmured breathlessly, terror seizing him. He knew that voice had sounded familiar. He would never forget that voice. It was burned into every inch of his soul. Sam felt his throat start to close as his reality spun around him. How could Lucifer possibly be here? Wouldn't they have felt it? Maybe, maybe with the angels falling, Lucifer was booted out of Hell? But why would the two be connected? Perhaps with Heaven closed, the warding on the Cage had failed. He wracked his brain for an answer, trying desperately to cling to logic. All the memories he thought he'd suppressed came roaring to the surface. Dean's painful grip on his arm pulled him from the onslaught threatening to drown him.

"What did you say?" Dean asked quietly, aware of the several pairs of eyes watching them curiously.

"Lucifer," Sam repeated, looking at Dean with wide, fear-filled eyes. "He's back. How—Dean, how—he can't be back, he just can't…" Sam began to slump, but before Dean could move to support him, his eyes flashed blue and he righted himself. Ezekiel gave Dean a knowing look and returned his even gaze to the man sitting before them.

Dean bit his tongue, unsure how to handle this turn of events. He looked at Dr. Price and found that he indeed very closely resembled Lucifer's original vessel. "Is your partner alright?" the devil's doppelganger inquired, appearing mildly concerned.

"Yeah, um, just low blood sugar," he supplied quickly, pulling some chocolate from his pocket. He handed it to Ezekiel. "Eat that, you'll feel better," he softly commanded. The angel opened Sam's mouths to protest and Dean's subtle glare made him acquiesce. Dean returned his attention to the offending subject. "Dr. Price, you, uh, wouldn't happen to have any family in Pike Creek, Delaware, maybe a cousin by the name of Nick, by any chance? Died in 2010?"

The man's forehead creased and confusion filled his bright blue eyes. "Erm, surely this can't be the reason for your visit…"

Dean shrugged. "Thought you might be able to help on another case, but no, you're right."

"So what did you come here for?" Jedikiah's tone turned sharp.

Out of the corner of his eye, Dean saw Sam's mouth open. _Shit, Zeke, no…_ "Well," Dean hurried out, "we were investigating a missing persons case, and we got a tip that Ultra may have something to say about that." Jedikiah's jaw clenched slightly and Dean knew he had hit his mark.

"And where would that tip have come from?" the doctor asked.

"You know our sources are confidential," Ezekiel said. Dean eyed his brother's form carefully, surprised to hear the angel involving himself. He looked back at Dr. Price in time to see him throw an unusual glance towards the young man who had escorted him. The youth stared at Sam with unnerving interest and Dean felt his skin crawl. Sam had been right. Something was wrong. They needed to get out.


	4. Chapter 4

His uncle cast him a suspicious glance, which Stephen felt was meant to be an order. Creeping around Jedikiah's consciousness, he heard his wish to know what the tall agent was thinking. Stephen set his concentration and attempted to breach the agent's defenses. He felt himself get a foothold, as if the man was distracted, then felt himself violently ejected. He felt a force follow him and push against his own mind. The whine returned and Stephen flinched against it. A whispering voice speaking a language he did not recognize filled his mind. ' _Do not try again_ ,' a voice commanded, a voice that did not belong to the man.

Startled, Stephen responded without thinking. _'Are you a Tomorrow Person?'_

A flare of blinding light and heat filled his senses. _'That is not for you to know,'_ the voice said, withdrawing its presence from Stephen's mind. A thrumming ache pounded in his head. _What the hell was that?!_ he wondered. He cast an uncertain look back to Jedikiah, who caught the look and smirked.

"You should know I'm not usually involved in such human interest cases, but, I'm in a good mood. How about you leave the file with me and I'll see what I can dig up," Jedikiah offered generously.

The shorter agent nodded appreciatively and handed over a manila folder. "We'll be in touch," he said warmly, but his expression did not match his tone. Agent Hewson retreated from the desk and back to his partner. Stephen moved to lead them out. "I think we remember the way out," the man said. He turned to leave but Agent Evans remained awkwardly still, peering at Jedikiah until his partner hooked his arm. Agent Hewson dragged them away in a brisk walk, clearly eager to leave. _What was going on? Who were these people?_

Jedikiah's low "hmm…" broke his chain of thought and sent a shiver up Stephen's spine. This couldn't be good.


	5. Chapter 5

Dean walked briskly to the car, impatient to check on his brother. He sighed with relief as his Baby came into view. "Sam, how you doing?" he called, unlocking the door and opening it. Hearing no answer, he turned. Sam—no, Ezekiel—stood before him, unsure what to do. "Zeke, give me Sam."

"I do not think that would be wise," the angel replied softly.

Dean shut the door angrily and took a step towards his brother. "I wasn't asking."

Sam's head bobbed with understanding but its original occupant did not return. "Dean Winchester, you asked me to protect your brother. I believe that is what I am doing."

Dean retreated and leaned against the Impala. "What—what exactly happened back there?"

Sam's eyes squinted momentarily then widened as Ezekiel found the words. "I was not engaged in the moment with Sam until I felt the pang of fear rush through him. When he heard Dr. Price's voice, he recognized it as Lucifer's."

"But it's not Lucifer. Right? Wouldn't we—"

Ezekiel shook his head. "No, it is not my fallen brother. I would know instantly. The man does bear an uncanny resemblance to the vessel he inhabited before Sam."

"Uncanny resemblance?" Dean exclaimed. "The man's a frigging spitting image. So, Sam saw him, and what, freaked out?"

"Yes, Sam, 'freaked out,' as you say, because memories of Lucifer and Hell began flashing through his mind."

"But I thought Cas took care of it back in that mental hospital."

Ezekiel looked at Dean, sadness filling Sam's features. "No, he only removed the trauma. Those are Sam's memories. Castiel did not feel he could erase part of Sam's life."

"He did it for Lisa and Ben! Surely Sam's Hell is worth forgetting!"

The angel was silent for a moment, then looked down. "Castiel did that as a favor for you, because of the… special bond that you two share. But he also considers himself a friend to Sam. He did not feel Sam would appreciate such an act, no matter the intention."

"So you're telling me, this whole time, Sam has still had a head full of Hell?"

"I believe this is not any different from your experience."

Dean groaned in frustration. _Angels, man. So dense._ "Yeah, but I'm not Sam. I can manage it. Dammit, why didn't he tell me?"

"He did not wish to upset you."

Dean stifled a yell. He could just strangle Sam. And how had Dean not noticed all this time? Yeah, Sam seemed more morose than usual, but he thought it was because he missed his girlfriend, because of the trials, because deep down he knew something was horribly wrong. Guilt clawed at Dean and he suppressed it. "Can I have him back now?"

Ezekiel paused then shook his head. "He needs to rest after his ordeal. His soul is in pain. I am doing my best to soothe him but my grace is no match for Lucifer's cruelty. I will return him to you when Sam can function on his own."

Dean's face twitched with irritation but he understood Zeke was just trying to help. "Okay, fine. Let's get the hell out of here."

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To be continued.

My first crossover! Please review!


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